Question

Read these lines from the poem. Alone the glory and the spoil I always laughing bore away; How do these lines reflect the central idea that the author uses people she is romantically involved with?

They highlight the speaker's generous nature.


They reinforce the idea that the speaker is intentionally cruel.

They show that the speaker takes her relationships seriously.


They reveal that the speaker enters relationships for her own amusement.

Answer 1

(The poem is "A Thousand Martyrs" by Aphra Behn)

Answer: They reveal that the speaker enters relationships for her own amusement.

Explanation: The word alone is crucial here. The author is telling us that she always took "the glory and the spoils" (the things you take after winning a war) for herself only, laughing, i.e., amusing herself while being unworried with the other person's suffering.